Tex Whiston to speak to HSUMD

Saturday

Sep 7, 2013 at 1:39 PM

The September meeting of the Historical Society of the Upper Mojave Desert will feature Tex Whitson reminiscing about the Dead Owls Car Club.

The September meeting of the Historical Society of the Upper Mojave Desert will feature Tex Whitson reminiscing about the Dead Owls Car Club. The meeting will be held at 7:00 PM on Tuesday, September 17th, at the Historic USO Building at 230 W. Ridgecrest Blvd.The Dead Owls Car Club was founded in 1956 by a few racing enthusiasts who were deemed too “rowdy” for the Dust Devils. Charter members included some familiar, long-time Ridgecrest residents such as Pat Burke, Joe Clavett, Max Hess as well as Tex Whitson and many more. Meeting regularly at the old Yucca Inn Drive Inn, they were primarily a racing and partying club, although they did put on the occasional full-blown concert, including one with Joe Houston. Tex and friends will tell us of the Dead Owls’ exploits, including building a rail car (a bare-bones dragster) from the belly tank of a bomber. Tex grew up in Ridgecrest but left to travel the world in a variety of jobs, most notably as a manager for Merle Haggard, and helping Benny Binion with the World Series of Poker. He still considers his roots in Ridgecrest, and with many friends and family left here, he is a frequent visitor. He helped arrange for Roy Bookbinder’s successful concert at the Historic USO Building as well.The Society meets on the third Tuesday of most months. Meetings are free and all are welcome to attend. For more information on this or future meetings, call the HSUMD at 760-375-8456.